Beet-digger.



Patented Nov. 4, |902. A. lMORISGN BEET BIGGER.

(Application led Jan. 13, 1902.)

(No Model.)

.ZU/orneys.

w UNrTen Sfrnrns PATENT Cruce.

ALEXANDER `MORISON, OF SAGINAW, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALE TO BENJAMIN W. GUBLIT, OF SAGINAW, MICHIGAN.

BEET-olccsa.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 712,951, dated November 4, 1902.

Application led January 13, 1902. Serial No. 89,401. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern: arranged in pairs on opposite sides of the cen- Ie it known that I, ALEXANDER MORISON, ter. vIn these bearings are journaled the a citizen of the United States of America, reshafts E, which carry at their front ends the siding at Saginaw, in the county of Saginaw revolving digging members F. 5 and State of Michigan, have invented certain The digging members are'alike in shape new and useful Improvements in Beet-Digand size, the general outline being that of a gers, of which the following is a specification, true cone, which at its base assumes a somereference being had therein to the accompawhat beet-shaped outline, which falls away p nying drawings. to a contracted hub G. This general outline xo The principal object of this invention is to is, however, greatly modified by having conprod uceamachine which will dig the beets out siderable portions of the body gouged out, so of the groundin sucha manner that the beets as to form large indentations I-I, extending will not be bruised or marred in the slightest from near the point to the hub, the concave and will be left on the surface of the ground portions becoming deeper and wider with the I5 free of dirt and ready to be gathered up. increase in the diameter.

To this end my invention consists in the In the drawings the number of indentations specific construction and. arrangement of two shown is four; but this number may be varied beet-shaped digging 'members and of other within certain limits. parts cooperatingtherewithtoproducealight- As shown, the digging members leave an 7o 2o draft machine of simple construction and open space between them which at the point adapted to the needs of the beet-grower as a is equal to the width of the row, which at the labor-saving device, all as more fully hereinpresent method of culture is about eight after described,and shown in the accompanyinches, while at the base they are left about ing drawings,in whichone inch apart, which is that of about the 25 Figure-1 isa vertical vlongitudinal section smallestroot to be pulled.

substantially on line x Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a The shafts E are held against end motion plan with parts broken away, andFig. 3 is a by means of collars I, and at their rear ends, cross-section through one of the digging me'mwhich project out through the bearings, they bers. carry the bevel drive-pinion J. 8o

3o The machine consists ofa four-wheeled The tilting frame C is provided with rearsupporting frame' provided with a central wardly-extending brackets K, in which is draft-tongue for drawing the machine with a transversely`journaled a shaft L, carrying a team of horses, which, togetherwith the front pinion M, which receives motion from a gearwheels, travel in the spaces between the row wheel N upon the rear axle and transmits mo- 35 of beets to be dug and the next'adjacent row, tion to they bevelpinions J throughibevel while the hind wheels'are preferably more gear-wheels O, meshing with these pinions, widely separated and travel inthe spaces beyall so arranged as to impart a rotary motion tween the next adjacent rows, thus giving into the digging members at a relatively high creased stability and preventing possible inspeed and in the direction required to dig the 9o 4o jury to the beets which might be thrown side beets.

wise. The hind wheels are 'so-called trac The forward end of the tilting frame is protion-wheels, which impart motion to the rear vided with means for supporting it at a variaxle A through the medium of ratchets in the able incline to 'permit of adjustingV the digusual manner. The rear axle is journaled in ging members to enter the ground to a greater 45 bearings B, secured to thelongitudinal side or lesser depth or of raising them clear of the bars of the frame, andV between the inner ends ground when not in use. This is accomof these bearings is pivotally supported upon plished by guiding the forward end of the the axle the tilting frame C. This tilting tilting frameV in vertical segmental guideframe extends forwardly and rearwardly of grooves P by means of Yarms Qfextending ico 5o its pivotal connection with the axle and is fromthetiltingframelaterallyintosaidguideprovided at its opposite en ds with bearings D, grooves, and by means of a hand-lever R, ar-

ranged to one side of the drivers seat. This lever is pivotally secured upon a transverse shaft S and connected through suitable intermediate connections with the forward end of the tilting fra-me, as in the usual manner of arranging such levers.

'Fheguide-grooves P are formed in a casting depending from a cross-bar T, which extends between the side bars of the frame, and this cross-bar also supports the shaft S by means of suitable brackets U.

In operation the shafts E, with their cones F, are adjusted by the lever R to the desired inclination in order that the cones will engage in the ground at the desired depth, and when the machine moves forward these cones are revolved through the medium of the gearing connecting with the axle. These cones, it will be observed, revolve away from each other, and the cones do their work by rolling out the ground in which the beets grow, thereby causing the beets to come out of the ground without any contact of the cones with the beets themselves. This is a particular advantage in machines of this character, as the beets are not bruised, which injures their quality and prevents their being stored for any length of time. The cones in my device are enabled, by reason of their cross-section and proximity to each other, to act like the two jaws of a tongue to seize upon the entire body of the ground which enters between the cones and lift the whole portion, which is done before any beet actually comes in contact with the cones. The earth thus forms a cushion around the beet while the ground is thus lifted up and rolled out, and while the ground will in a measure fall back again into the furrow which the cones have plowed the beets will remain on top, as the loose earth lls in the holes from which the beets have been extracted. The function of the cones or digging members is thus primarily to roll out the dirt in which the beets grow, and the digging out of the beets is incidental thereto. This will be evident, since the cones as constructed have no sharp corners, these being all rounded otf,and particularly the corners where the concave and convex portions join each other. Further, as the angle of the cone of each member is about forty-live degrees the opening or space between the conical portions presents a much larger angle than in preceding machines of this character. In fact, by this construction it is impossible for the members to nip the beet hard enough to bruise it, as itis only by the resistance of the ground that the members are enabled to take hold of the beets enough to pull them after they are slightly loosened in the ground. The large indentations in the cones provide for gripping the beets at dierent and widelyseparate points of their length instead of only at one point, as plain cones would do, and the indentations in the cones permit the raising of the beet from the ground surrounding it, as the ground can pass through in the indentations without following the beets. 'lhe members can thus be placed close together to catch even the smallest beet. It will be understood that to obtain this operation the cavities of one cone must cooperate with the cavities in the other cone, and they must be wide and deep enough to get a rm hold on opposite sides of the body of the ground in which the beets are rooted to exert enough pull to overcome the resistance of the bottom roots, which are below the inuence of the cones. This principle of digging beets in general I believe to be new, and I do not, therefore, wish to restrict the invention to the exact mechanical device which I have shown and described, nor to its use in a beet-puller alone, as other root crops may be harvested with the machine.

Vthat I claim as my invention is- I. In a beet-digging machine, a pair of revolving digging members, of a generally conical shape and formed upon their conical faces with indentations increasing in depth and width toward the base of the cones and dividing the surface of the cones into alternate concave and convex portions whereby the concave portions receive a quantity of earth and prevent the members coming in direct contact with the beets.

2. In a beet-digging machine, a pair of revolving (ligging members havinga general conical shape supported at their base on shafts and unsupported at their forward ends, the surface of said members provided with indentations increasing in depth and width toward the base whereby a quantity of earth is received and held in the indentations to prevent direct contact of the members with the beets.

3. In a beet-digging machine, a pair of revolving digging members substantially coneshaped and formed on their conical faces with longitudinal indentations increasing in depth and width toward the base of the cones and dividing the surface of said cones into alternate concave and convex portions whereby the concave portions receive a quantity of earth and prevent the members comingin direct contact with the beets, and means for imparting rotary movement to said members.

4. In a beet-digging machine, the combination with supporting-wheel frame, of a tilting frame centrally pivoted upon the drive-axle, and extending forwardly, a pair of shafts journaled upon said tilting frame on opposite sides of the center, means for transmitting motion to said shaft from the drive-axle, a lever connected to the forward end of the tilting frame for raising and lowering said frame and a pair of digging members secured to the forward ends of the shafts, said digging members having conical forward ends formed with indentations extending longitudinally of the members and increasing in depth and width toward the base whereby a IOC IIO

quantity of earth is held within theindentations andthe members prevented from direct f contact with the beets.-

5. In a beet-digging machine, the combina- 5 tion with a, supporting-frame, of two revolving cone-shaped digging members formed with indentations increasing in depth and Width and extending from the point of the cones to the base thereof, said members adapted to '.o compact the ground betty/een them and lift the compacted ground and the beets, the ground compacted around the beet serving to prevent direct Contact of the digging members With the beets.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature 15 iu presence of two Witnesses.

ALEXANDER MORISON. Witnesses:

ISMAY VAN SICKLE, JOHN J. RUPP. 

